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A Discussion About the Post-Gentrification Discussion

“At this point I’m battling gentrification fatigue,” proclaims Dax-Devlon Ross, who has written extensively about his experiences as a self-proclaimed “black gentrifier” in West Harlem.

Dax-Devlon Ross begins a long read for Next American City by decrying the media’s canned coverage of gentrification, where “oh well” is usually the conclusion, rather than a take away of any substance: “We writers tend to find the same urban studies experts and non-profit executives, quote the most updated versions of the same census or economic policy data, and trot out variations of the stock community member…”

Then Ross tells the story of his exodus from New York City—after his market-rate apartment priced itself out of his range and he decided to stop “drinking the overpriced Kool-Aid.” In the end his conclusion is not the same old narrative about millennials choosing urban environments and techie bullies driving away the less fortunate: “I’ve lived in enough places to learn that people are people and city life doesn’t have a copyright on cool, community or culture. Now that I’ve finally figured that out — and embraced it — I fully intend to invite any and everyone who feels they’re being pushed out of their beloved neighborhoods to join me in the ‘burbs.”